Should school uniforms be worn?

Hey Inquisitive writers! Today I am collaborating with Wormal with a debatable topic: should school uniforms be worn? We will both be talking about our opinions, so be sure to check out her post ,too!

Should school uniforms be worn? My short answer would be no. I honestly think there are a lot of reasons why schools shouldn’t make their students wear uniforms.

1: Students can’t be unique

The students wearing the same uniform promotes sameness, essentially. This can be damaging to students in middle school and high school because they are trying to figure out who they are now, and they should be allowed to wear what they want to express that.

2: The outfit can be uncomfortable

Apart from other issues, the outfit can simply contain a material that can be uncomfortable, or possibly a pupil could be allergic to. This would distract from learning in school, which is the opposite of what the outfit is “suppose to do”

3: Students should have their own decision in their clothing

Counterargument:

Do you still think that students can be unique even when wearing school uniforms? Sure, they can add accessories to their outfit, but anything else? No, they still have to wear that same outfit to school, like everyone else. It’s true that you can’t express yourself as much with a uniform than if you wore clothes that you preferred.

Also, you can’t really argue about some students not being uncomfortable in their uniform. This will distract them from doing performing their best in school, I know it would distract me.

Lastly, students aren’t deciding on what they are wearing. The school/government is. Unless it was voted on, it wasn’t their choice to a) Get the outfits and b) Choose the outfit that they are going to wear.

Should schools force uniforms on their students? If you were/are a student, how would you feel if this happened to you? Or has it already? Don’t forget to check out Wormal’s post ,too!

Hey before you go, I’m curious inquisitive to know what you think my age is. Don’t worry, it’s anonymous and your result won’t be posted publicly. You can take the poll on the right (or on the bottom if you’re viewing this on a mobile device), or if you’re seeing this in the WordPress.com reader, you can take the poll on the bottom.

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37 comments

While I agree with many of the points (self-expression, comfort, government dictation, etc.), I do think that wearing the same school uniform puts all students on an equal level. There are no designer clothes that make one stand out as wealthy or privileged, or worn second-hand clothing that speaks of financial hardship. So many times we place a preconceived judgement on what someone wears–it’s unconscious many times. Also, some schools deal with gang and bullying issues. I agree with uniforms mostly because the focus can be on gaining an equal education without other judgements clouding the classroom environment. Just the two-cent opinion of an out-of-touch old person! 🙂 Dawn

I grew up wearing a uniform and now live in a country where uniforms are only for catholic and private schools. I’m a little disappointed my kids won’t wear uniforms, to be honest. It just seems easier than fussing around with fashions and the latest outfit. I do think little children look cute in their uniforms.
One argument I used to hear growing up was that a uniform makes it easy to identify which school a child belongs to, in case they are lost/in trouble or misbehaving in a store lol.

I agree with you, kind of. The uniforms are supposed to help children all feel the same and have no differences or be bullied whatsoever, and from my view with the school I’ve been going to, it has worked well so I don’t see any problem with it for me.
But for my best friend, she makes me see it in a different light and I truly thank her for it. She doesn’t like uniforms because she says that it doesn’t allow her to dress the way that she was made to be, it doesn’t let her express herself. The uniform system doesn’t work at all in my opinion because of her, because some girls can wear accessories that are more expensive than the accessories that their girls or boys have, and it can make them feel bad about themselves.
So now, my final answer would be that school uniforms shouldn’t be worn, because there will always be a way for students to feel judged by different, even in uniforms.
Great post, I love the discussions!!

I agree on one of the reader’s opinion. Uniform must be worn instead of any casual clothing. It can happen anywhere but mostly in rich Country like Switzerland… it is more about how expensive your clothes are than what is actually in your brain. Some parents bought expensive clothing for their kids to be “in” so having a uniform is in respect of the schools and being fair and growing without too much air in their heads.

I came from Alli’s blog and I am on the “no uniform” group! It’s not up to the school what the students should and should not wear, and they should not waste school time on such things. It’s up to the parent to make sure their child is appropriately dressed, and it’s at their discretion what is and is not acceptable at the end of the day.

[…] going to be extra fire. Not to mention it’s with one of the coolest gals ever, Jo from The Inquisitive Writer! The link provided goes directly to her post about school uniforms and I definitely recommend […]

To be honest, I don’t mind school uniforms. It meant I didn’t have to worry about what to wear every morning (as I already knew), and it meant less judging from others on what you wore, or how much it cost. At least, that’s always how it went down on days where we could wear whatever, and it made me quite self conscious. Maybe that was just my school though 🤔

Sammeee. It was very comical actually, since we didn’t get to wear any other clothes those particular days where we were allowed to, I remember thinking everyone coming in their best clothes or something, I mean in general it was a bit of a pressure.

Interesting article. I think school uniforms should be worn, but I think that the rules should not be so strict and I think people should be able to have certain leverage – for them to slightly add unique touches. I think for teenagers so obsessed (stereotyping) on appearance, it’s stressful pressure trying to look good everyday and for kids that cannot afford a wide range of options, it might lead them to feeling insecure.

You have really valid arguments, and I remember having a debate about this while I was in school (we wore a uniform) a counter argument that has always stuck with me is that having a uniform prevents the less fortunate children from feeling isolated. For example it doesn’t matter that they can’t afford to keep up with fashion trends like their friends can because they all wear the same things. Although like you, I think not wearing uniform gives children and young adults a sense of freedom and being able to express themselves!

Well not really. You can two or three uniforms and use them for two academic years easy. We too had a debate about this in school (I ended up in FOR) and it really forced me into finding a plus for uniforms. For the most part it didn’t really bother me much. The hung about trends is that they are fleeting and teenagers are under the pressure to follow them to fit in and it’s not economic at all. I totally agree that creative freedom in expressing yourself is vital but somehow it seemed to me that being restricted to a uniform made me work harder to make sure that the little tweaks I made to the uniform could convey my personality and it was actually fun! It seems like most people don’t have a good experience with uniforms and though I do not Support it and I do believe that we could totally do without them, I’ve been fortunate to be very content with my own.

In my school I have a very strict uniform code where if a certain part of our uniform is missing we may get punished for it. Sometimes it feels like we only wear it so that we can promote our school. Lovely post with some really good reasoning!❤️

If I were given a chance to vote, I would vote for NO UNIFORMS. If I remember, one reason for uniforms was that it prevented or diminished the “gang identity” issue. In some cities, a color was associated with a gang and hence everyone who wished to be identified as a member wore a certain color. I think that reason is out the window.

Of course the other reason was short skirts. So, one could say the school uniform is a male decision against female freedom. Hmm, nothing new there! Dress codes, according to some, are too difficult to enforce. That sounds like an excuse, nothing more.

Sameness and democracy are not synonymous. Students should be allowed to dress as they see fit, and the school officials certainly should have enough brain power to enforce–if they deem it necessary–a dress code.

I agree for the most part. I’ve heard it said that if everyone is wearing the same clothes, it helps someone’s personality shine through instead, and that it creates a more serious and studious environment. At the same time, though, humans are visual creatures and visually expressing parts of ourselves with clothing choices is something that’s definitely missing with uniforms in schools. I think certain dress codes in school are fine to create a serious environment, enforcing things such as no pajamas in school, but making everyone wear the same clothes is taking it a bit too far most of the time.

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